When a bee stings a human, its stinger has small hooks that remain embedded in the skin. In trying to free itself, the part of the bee's abdomen connected to the stinger detaches, causing its death.
The bee's sting is a type of hollow needle, directly connected to a small venom pouch inside its abdomen. This needle has tiny hooks, called barbs, oriented backward. Once the sting penetrates human skin, these barbs grip tightly, making it almost impossible to remove the sting without pulling it out. When the bee tries to retract its sting, it ends up getting stuck, taking with it part of the abdomen, muscles, and sometimes even some essential organs of the insect.
In bees, the stinger is equipped with tiny barbs, somewhat like little harpoons. When a bee stings a human, these barbs easily penetrate our soft skin but prevent the stinger from coming out. As a result, when it tries to pull away, the stinger gets stuck, and it ends up having to leave it behind, along with part of its abdomen. This usually only happens with skin like ours, which is thick and elastic enough. Against other insects with thinner or harder skin, the bee can often sting without losing its stinger and continue on its way peacefully.
When the bee stings a human, its stinger gets stuck in the skin, forcing it to tear away in an attempt to escape. The problem is that this stinger is not simply embedded like a needle; it is connected to essential digestive organs for its survival. In trying to free itself, it tears away part of its abdomen, including its venom sac, vital muscles, and part of its digestive tract. In other words, the bee loses at the same time the essential organs for its life. From that moment on, it is doomed, unable to survive this trauma. It usually dies within minutes or hours afterward, a direct consequence of this involuntary sacrifice.
When a wasp or a bumblebee stings, their stinger is smooth and easily comes out of your skin afterward. They can thus sting you multiple times in a row without any problem, calmly retrieving their weapon. In contrast, with the bee, it's a bit of a sacrifice beforehand: its stinger is barbed like a harpoon, which prevents it from withdrawing. As a result, it leaves behind a significant part of its abdomen and dies after a single attack. Wasps and hornets, on the other hand, do not have this issue at all; they keep their abdomen intact after stinging.
Only worker bees die after stinging a human; in queens and male bumblebees, the stinger is smooth, allowing them to sting multiple times without any issues.
When a bee loses its stinger, it also loses essential parts of its abdomen, such as vital glands, muscles, and nerves, making its survival impossible.
Evolution has favored a barbed stinger in worker bees, making it more effective against enemy insects, although this mechanism becomes fatal when they sting the thick and elastic skin of a mammal.
Despite their reputation as aggressive defenders, bees only sting humans when they feel directly threatened or when their colony is disturbed.
The stinger should be removed quickly without squeezing it to avoid injecting more venom. After removing the stinger, it is advisable to wash the sting site with soapy water, apply cold to reduce pain and swelling, and then possibly use a soothing cream.
Unlike bees, wasps have a smooth stinger. This stinger allows them to sting multiple times without getting stuck in the skin and without causing their death.
Yes, bee venom is studied and sometimes used in apitherapy treatments. It is believed to have anti-inflammatory properties and may help treat conditions such as arthritis. However, its use requires supervision by a healthcare professional due to the risk of allergic reactions.
No, only worker bees lose their stinger and die after stinging a thick-skinned mammal like humans. The queen, having a different type of stinger, can sting multiple times without dying.
A normal reaction causes localized pain, swelling, and redness. A severe allergic reaction may include difficulty breathing, swelling of the face or lips, dizziness, or loss of consciousness. These symptoms require urgent medical attention.
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